No-trust motion against govt is not the issue, says DMK

Says we are not trying to do politics, we are trying to save 'our people'

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After the resignation of all DMK ministers from the government, DMK today said pulling down the UPA dispensation by bringing no-trust motion in the House is not the issue, but welfare of Tamils is their focus.

"It is not our issue. We are for welfare of Tamils and taking action against war crimes committed against Tamils in Lanka," DMK MP Tiruchi Shiva said outside Parliament when asked whether the party will bring a no-confidence motion against the government.

After deciding to pull out of the government yesterday, all DMK ministers today resigned from the government, expressing dismay over the "dilution" of India's stand on the Lankan Tamils issue.

Asked why DMK is shying away from brining a no-confidence motion, Shiva said, "We are not shying away, but the issue which is at forefront must be addressed first. It is not about the government. We are not doing politics, we are trying to save our people."

Both Houses of Parliament were repeatedly disrupted over the issue of Lankan Tamils.

Making his party's stand clear, the DMK MP said, "Yesterday, we got the draft resolution which was totally different from the earlier resolution. There were many deviations and changes which made the resolution diluted. When we expect the Indian government to make the resolution stronger, it has been diluted and the government is silent on the Geneva conference."

When asked that many parties, including principal opposition party, feel that DMK's demand for stronger resolution cannot be accepted and the foreign policy cannot be dictated, the DMK leader said "Foreign policy cannot make the country a silent spectator to the butchering of lakhs of people, genocide of Tamils in Sri Lanka. Foreign policy must be devised for the welfare of the people and the interest of the people. Anyone can say anything but our policy will remain the same," he said.

When it was pointed out that Sri Lanka is a sovereign country, he said, "Just because it is a sovereign country, we are requesting for building international pressure. Vienna Convention says there is a word 'genocide'. So we are not coining a new phrase which is impractical. What is going on in Sri Lanka is genocide and we want that to be incorporated in the resolution," he said.